Millersville, Pa. — Ambling University Development Group will lead the $180 million project.
Rendering courtesy of AUDG.Millersville, Pa. — Ambling University Development Group (AUDG) will be the developer and project manager at Millersville University, where each residence hall will be replaced over five years and multiple phases of development.
The $180 million project is being financed with private tax-exempt bonds through one of the project’s partners, RBC Capital Markets of Lancaster, Pa. Student Services Inc. will take on the debt and own the buildings, while the university will manage them.
Millersville University is one of the 14 universities in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE).
Work will begin in May 2013 on eight new residence halls. The estimated 600,000-square-foot, 2,000-bed modernization initiative is located primarily on the university’s south quad. The construction project will take place in phases so that the bed count isn’t decreased during the building process.
The first two buildings, which are scheduled to be completed by August 2014, will include 185,000 square feet, 695 beds and will be constructed in the existing parking lot at the south end of the South Quad of campus. Three halls will be demolished in spring 2014: the two high-rises, Lenhardt and Burrowes Hall, as well as Hobbs Hall.
In addition to the new residence halls, a new 350-space parking lot will be constructed across Centennial Drive from the South Quad and will offset the loss of the 180-space parking lot for the construction site.
“This dynamic project is designed to have a long-term positive impact on the entire Millersville campus,” said Dr. Aminta Breaux, vice president of student affairs. “The project demonstrates Millersville’s strong commitment to providing state-of-the-art housing for our students.”
“These are facilities that will appeal to today’s students as well as tomorrow’s students,” said Jeremy Doss, vice president at Ambling University Development Group (AUDG), which is managing the project and the development team.
Ambling was awarded the project, following a national bid process. The members on Ambling’s development team include four local firms: the general contractor, Benchmark Construction of Brownstown, Pa.; the civil engineer, Dawood Engineering of Enola, Pa.; the mechanical, electrical and plumbing engineer, STV Inc., of Douglasville, Pa.; and the investment banker, RBC Capital Markets of Lancaster, Pa. Both AUDG and the architect for the project, Lord Aeck Sergeant, are headquartered in Georgia.